Product Details

• Actors: Morgan Freeman, Christian Slater, Randy Quaid, Minnie Driver, Edward Asner
• Directors: Mikael Salomon
• Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Subtitles: Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Paramount
• DVD Release Date: December 15, 1998
• Run Time: 97 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305222894
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #51,474 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Hard Rain" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

It may not be a disaster movie, per se, but this terminally silly thriller is certainly disastrous, and would be pointless without the novelty of its setting in a flooding Midwestern town during a torrential rainfall. Physically impressive but idiotic in every other respect, the movie pits an armored truck courier (Christian Slater) against a smart leader of thieves (Morgan Freeman) and a corruptible town sheriff (Randy Quaid) who are vying for possession of $3 million in cash. A waterlogged game of cat and mouse, the plot is so contrived that even the most impressive action sequences--such as a jet-ski chase through flooded high-school corridors--are robbed of their already tenuous credibility. Before long you'll be yawning as incompetent accomplices are systematically dispatched by their own stupidity, in the kind of movie where the use of power boats inevitably leads to at least one death by outboard motor. What's impressive here is the physical production itself--the effect of flooding was created by building a huge replica of downtown Huntington, Indiana, in a huge, watertight aircraft hangar in Palmdale, California! --Jeff Shannon

Product Description

A powerhouse cast churns up the action in this thrill-drenched story of an armored car driver battling armed crooks and the rampaging waters of a killer flood. Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 04/11/2006 Starring: Morgan Freeman Randy Quaid Run time: 96 minutes Rating: R Director: Mikael Salomon

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hasn't stopped raining for days, March 6, 2001

By 

Inspector Gadget "Go Go Gadget Reviews" (On the trail of Doctor Claw) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hard Rain (DVD)

Shot as 'The Flood' in 1996, re-shot as 'Hard Rain' in 1997, and released into cinemas with virtually no publicity in 1998 it's a shame that this film sank with out a trace (pun intended). But you have to wonder why the studio abandoned it when it took investment from multiple backers to keep the production afloat (pun intended again).

I recall seeing publicity shots in 1997 for scenes (and characters) that aren't even in the movie. I guess we'll never know what Graham Yost's script was originally about. Paramount figured that the public had had enough of disaster movies and re-tooled 'The Flood' as a heist flick midway through filming. I can't say if it's for better or worse, but Hard Rain is still an exciting action ride.

Yes, the characterization is thin, but it avoids the cliche of making them all annoying as a quick way of defining them (something Twister, Volcano, and Dante's Peak were guilty of). The stragglers caught in the deluge as Huntingburg, Indiana is swept off the face of the Earth don't need to define themselves. They are who they are. Since the movie virtually takes place in real time there's little room for meaningless development.

Minnie Driver's unconvincing accent aside, the cast do pretty well with the material, and Slater makes for a better action hero here than he did in Broken Arrow (ironically, by the same writer).

Hard Rain works best in the cinema. It's too bad that it flopped because the big screen is where it deserved to be seen. Too many folks have seen and criticized this film from TV viewings that do the scope of the action no justice whatsoever. The water and chaos is very well shot and brilliantly staged. The bouncing, shaking, wobbling camera was an innovative idea, and if you like the slow-motion fire-fights of John Woo movies then you'll get a kick out of Hard Rain.

Another strong aspect that has gone overlooked with the rest of the movie is Chris Young's powerful score; the orchestral sound of violence, mayhem, and nature taking over. Seriously, it's great stuff and you really ought to get Hard Rain: Music From The Motion Picture.

Despite the bad reviews and poor box office returns Hard Rain is still a highly entertaining B-movie. We'll never know the full story behind its trouble production (there hasn't been anything close to a Special Edition DVD, and Mikael Salomon has never spoken publicly about it), but I recommend it to all action movie junkies. You won't be disappointed.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars SOGGY BUT FUN, July 28, 2004

By 

Michael Butts (Berkeley Springs, WV USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hard Rain (DVD)

HARD RAIN is enough to make you never want to see it rain again. Filmed entirely during the horrific storm and with the threatening collapse of the local dam, this movie requires some squinting of the eyes just to tell who's who. Director Mikael Solomon keeps things moving, and if the whole plot wasn't so darn preposterous and absurd, this could have been a classic. There are some great chase scenes, double crosses, etc., etc. It's just not very believable.
Christian Slater's laconic performance is reminiscent of a young Jack Nicholson, but he seems awkward and clumsy as an action hero (ditto BROKEN ARROW), but he's pleasant. Morgan Freeman reprises his bad guy role from CHAIN REACTION and the future NURSE BETTY with his usual grace and precision. Morgan's probably never given a bad performance. Randy Quaid is grim and vile as the sheriff gone bad, and Betty White/Richard Dysart provide some fun comic relief as an elderly couple who refuse to leave town. (Wonder what happens to them though---last we see them they're stuck in a tree?).
HARD RAIN may have benefitted from a more believable lead, say Bruce Willis, but it's entertaining and delivers, in spite of its silliness.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Twisted plot, but still a good movie, May 15, 2000

By 

jasenao (Dothan, Alabama, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hard Rain (DVD)

Hard Rain might have a twisted plot, pitting an armored truck guard against some robbers who are trying to steal 3 million dollars, but that doesn't really make it a bad movie. All the while, they're surrounded by a massive flood as their main obstacle. Hard Rain has some of the best actors such as Morgan Freeman and Randy Quaid playing the leading roles and they all do great jobs. Hard Rain also has some good action sequences and a lot of suspense throughout the film. It's like a wet and wild goosechase with everybody trying to catch Christian Slater in order to get the money. The special effects with all the water and rain couldn't have been done much better. Hard Rain is just another usual action movie until Morgan Freeman joins Christian Slater and they both team up and try to survive against the other robbers. That's when this movie gets a lot better with all the suspense and action.

If you like good action movies with some suspense added in, you will probably like Hard Rain. The only drawback is the twisted plot, sometimes you might wonder what the movie is really about. But watch it and you'll figure it out without a problem.